Millie, A. and Jacobson, J. (2002) Employee volunteering and the Special Constabulary: a review of employer policies, London: Police Foundation

Abstract:

The research conducted for this study had three broad aims. The first of these was to examine
the attitudes of large employers in the private sector to staff participation in voluntary work.
Thus, the study was concerned with the various ways in which employers actively encourage
employee volunteering, the extent to which employee volunteering is treated as an integral
component of ‘corporate social responsibility’ (CSR), and the kinds of rationales for
supporting voluntary work to which employers subscribe.
The second aim of the research was to look more specifically at whether employers have
provisions for or actively encourage staff involvement in the Special Constabulary: that is,
the voluntary section of the local police force. Hence the research looked at the extent to
which volunteering for the Special Constabulary is included within wider voluntary work
policies, is specified as a particular goal, or is not covered by such policies.
The third aim of the study built on the first and second: that is, the study has sought to use the
research findings on volunteering to identify opportunities for the Special Constabulary to
widen employer support for the organisation. By reviewing existing policies on employee
volunteering, and attitudes of employers to the Special Constabulary, the intention was to
consider ways in which employer support for the Special Constabulary might relate to other
CSR goals, and to explore the scope for raising awareness of the Specials among both
employers and employees.